I’m really enjoying listening to this. It’s lovely to hear it in the author’s voice – it feels very authentic and real. The writing really captures the landscape, the climate, the time and Eleanor's optimism tinged with burden.
“Optimism tinged with burden”. I tripped on that, and then was yes, that’s it exactly. I’d never thought of it that way, but it’s true to the experience of that time.
Sue— I am really enjoying the pace of listening to you read twice a week esp. as my days have been overfilled with to-do's. I love being read to. And OTRTJ really does suit the format because each segment is so nicely self-contained. Instead of living in suspense to find out what happens next, I take it in and carry it around with me for a few days.
It’s wonderful to hear from readers how, strange though this format is at first, they find they are settling into it and finding just how enjoyable it can be!
So many stories of hardship and redemption feel unrelatable. This one however, feels so intimate and familiar, especially around workplace issues that are rarely dealt with in fiction. The hardship is real and familiar - even while set in South Africa and Palestine - so human and ordinary. I loved the honesty.
To hear relatable, human + ordinary in the context of experiences that so many would, at first glance, consider to be anything but…that just makes my heart sing, as it exactly what I’m trying to accomplish for readers 🙏
Sue’s writing evokes strong emotions and saves space for nuance as she explores the complex topic of war, racism, sexism, mental health, global and corporate politics—and being a woman through it all.
Hah. Sue would go write a story that had all that in it, wouldn’t she 🤪. Thank you for the beautiful shout out that it actually works as a story. And as is truly readable. And not some dry intellectual philosophizing moralizing tome (yuck. I can’t read those anyway. And it would be torture to write too!)
I’m thoroughly enjoying the way this book is unfolding and am surprised that I appreciate the fact that I can’t jump ahead in the reading. I find that being forced to slow down and exercise patience while waiting for the next chapter to become available has allowed Sue’s stories to sit with me, and I even catch myself ruminating about them from time to time.
There's something intriguing about the way the book draws the reader in. Sue's lyrical writing delivers each chapter in short, sharp bursts - like flashes of colour and light that I am sure will gradually illuminate a much larger narrative. Her characterisations and observations are incredibly open and vulnerable, and it is insightful to identify where things resonate with me and where I can relate.
I am captivated by the first chapters and am excited to find out how the story progresses. My sense is that Sue is doing something really valuable by sharing her life decisions, experiences and learnings as she actively engages with many of the very real challenges of being human, and having to navigate life on the broader stage.
Wow. Just wow. When I saw this come in, my heart just got all fluttery. I know this old way of reading, slowly, is so old it’s now new again…but to hear you express so eloquently the joy of discovering what it’s like to read this way…that means so much! Thank you!
I’m really enjoying listening to this. It’s lovely to hear it in the author’s voice – it feels very authentic and real. The writing really captures the landscape, the climate, the time and Eleanor's optimism tinged with burden.
“Optimism tinged with burden”. I tripped on that, and then was yes, that’s it exactly. I’d never thought of it that way, but it’s true to the experience of that time.
Sue— I am really enjoying the pace of listening to you read twice a week esp. as my days have been overfilled with to-do's. I love being read to. And OTRTJ really does suit the format because each segment is so nicely self-contained. Instead of living in suspense to find out what happens next, I take it in and carry it around with me for a few days.
It’s wonderful to hear from readers how, strange though this format is at first, they find they are settling into it and finding just how enjoyable it can be!
So many stories of hardship and redemption feel unrelatable. This one however, feels so intimate and familiar, especially around workplace issues that are rarely dealt with in fiction. The hardship is real and familiar - even while set in South Africa and Palestine - so human and ordinary. I loved the honesty.
To hear relatable, human + ordinary in the context of experiences that so many would, at first glance, consider to be anything but…that just makes my heart sing, as it exactly what I’m trying to accomplish for readers 🙏
Sue’s writing evokes strong emotions and saves space for nuance as she explores the complex topic of war, racism, sexism, mental health, global and corporate politics—and being a woman through it all.
Hah. Sue would go write a story that had all that in it, wouldn’t she 🤪. Thank you for the beautiful shout out that it actually works as a story. And as is truly readable. And not some dry intellectual philosophizing moralizing tome (yuck. I can’t read those anyway. And it would be torture to write too!)
I’m thoroughly enjoying the way this book is unfolding and am surprised that I appreciate the fact that I can’t jump ahead in the reading. I find that being forced to slow down and exercise patience while waiting for the next chapter to become available has allowed Sue’s stories to sit with me, and I even catch myself ruminating about them from time to time.
There's something intriguing about the way the book draws the reader in. Sue's lyrical writing delivers each chapter in short, sharp bursts - like flashes of colour and light that I am sure will gradually illuminate a much larger narrative. Her characterisations and observations are incredibly open and vulnerable, and it is insightful to identify where things resonate with me and where I can relate.
I am captivated by the first chapters and am excited to find out how the story progresses. My sense is that Sue is doing something really valuable by sharing her life decisions, experiences and learnings as she actively engages with many of the very real challenges of being human, and having to navigate life on the broader stage.
Wow. Just wow. When I saw this come in, my heart just got all fluttery. I know this old way of reading, slowly, is so old it’s now new again…but to hear you express so eloquently the joy of discovering what it’s like to read this way…that means so much! Thank you!